PrayingToTheBarGods wrote:virgoyum.... Don't give up!!! Ur gonna kill it next time!!! I've been outta law school for 5 years, and finally on the 3rd try I passed the exam. I've had teachers tell me I wasn't cut out for law school or the career... It took a few tries, but I'm stubborn as hell, and I did it! Find that fire in ur belly and don't give up!!!!!

Wow I'm so glad for you! I hope you celebrated. That's powerful that you didn't let any teachers/naysayera hold you back.

I agree, virgoyum, don't give up! You're a good person, and though I don't even know you, I can tell from the things you've posted here. Don't ever give up. EVER. Keep swinging that bat and keep taking the test, and never give up. I don't know my results for a few more weeks and if I get bad news I'll just climb back up on that little pony. Hell, I already booked hotels up north in case I have to fly up and do it again. So hang in, dust yourself off, and please don't ever give up. The legal profession needs kind souls like yours.

You're so kind. Thank you so much for the words. I'm actually overwhelmed by the amount of support. I know I can do this I just have to approach mastering this sort of the way I did in law school, not the way a program is designed.

Per waiting on results, you know we're here to cheer you on good or bad I'm just inclined to believe GOOD! I'll be here with the congratulations !

I'm going to support you until you post here I PASSED MY BAR

Thank you so much!!! You're the best. I'm going to keep pushing!

I pretty much put all my barbri books in storage save for the CMR and essay book. I have the 2015-16 Kaplan book I purchased on Amazon but couldn't get to and have also added the Emmanuel books. I will hold off on Adaptibar until closer to bar prep if needed because there are quite a bit of MBE questions in there and it appears I have increased my MBE score by 15 pts to 139 which would have been great if didn't nosedive on the essays. As such, I am printing all previous IL essay questions to practice more on my time management with live content. I have a huge problem staying on task under limited time constraints especially when anxious which is one of the reasons I do not think Barbri was a good fit for me. Not once did a grader provide feedback on writing leaner essays or tips to be mindful on time. It was all great content and I never got lower than a 4 out of 6. Actually I have got more helpful information in the last 3 days for free than the amount I paid for that course. To help with outlining, I am considering purchasing lean sheets since it's only $30 bucks with the coupon. Once I finish designing my schedule, I plan on studying each subject cold, then moving on to the next once I have mastered it instead of the bar prep cram fest. If I can get my schedule finalized tonight, I plan on starting as early as tomorrow.

Hopefully I can catch you guys on here periodically, but I can totally understand if you summarily bail on the rest of us loooool.

Appreciate the support and still rooting for that good news letter for you

If you got a 139 on MBE, you are in good shape. You can totally do this. One thing I found lacking in all the bar prep companies was a lack of rule statements given outright for us to memorize. Luckily I found http://www.smartbarprep.com/ a month before the exam. It basically gives you rule statements to memorize arranged on likelihood of appearing on the test. It's awesome. Don't even "study" the subjects right now. if you got a 139 on the MBE, that means you know the material. So, just start memorizing the rules statements like NOW and in about a month, just start going through practice essays and apply the rule statements. At that point I think you can do a more comprehensive study. Good luck!

Sorry for the late response. Work.

It's interesting because I took 5-7 minutes before both sections and marked them by mbe subject. Instead of answering them chronologically, I answered them by comfort and mastery level in Barbri. It was a time risk but it helped with my anxiety and shaved time in some areas. I felt if I did lose time at least unanswered questions would be dispersed throughout the exam, not at the end. This time I really want to focus on doing better with property so I can get higher than a 139.2 next time. I plan on starting prep again this weekend and wondered if I should just start with property but you recommend memorizing the rules now. I just purchased lean sheets but I will look at smart bar prep too. Essays are really killing my confidence.

Honestly, I'm not sure what to do at this point. I did Themis the first time, Barbri the second, Marino retaker's the third along with essay tutoring, and a combination of Barbri and Adaptibar this time. I'm thinking of doing Kaplan on campus at the law school I live closest to for July. Though frankly, I'm not sure it'll help. Every time I've taken it, I failed by fewer than 5 points.

I was consistently getting 75-80% of practice MBE questions correct on both Barbri and Adaptibar when I took it this time. I'm curious to see my score report.

Honestly, I'm not sure what to do at this point. I did Themis the first time, Barbri the second, Marino retaker's the third along with essay tutoring, and a combination of Barbri and Adaptibar this time. I'm thinking of doing Kaplan on campus at the law school I live closest to for July. Though frankly, I'm not sure it'll help. Every time I've taken it, I failed by fewer than 5 points.

I was consistently getting 75-80% of practice MBE questions correct on both Barbri and Adaptibar when I took it this time. I'm curious to see my score report.

75 to 80 % is very high for MBE practice. That probably will equal to above 155 in real exam. Is it possible you achieve high practice score because you already knew some of the answers since you have done it a couple of times?

Honestly, I'm not sure what to do at this point. I did Themis the first time, Barbri the second, Marino retaker's the third along with essay tutoring, and a combination of Barbri and Adaptibar this time. I'm thinking of doing Kaplan on campus at the law school I live closest to for July. Though frankly, I'm not sure it'll help. Every time I've taken it, I failed by fewer than 5 points.

I was consistently getting 75-80% of practice MBE questions correct on both Barbri and Adaptibar when I took it this time. I'm curious to see my score report.

Honestly, I'm not sure what to do at this point. I did Themis the first time, Barbri the second, Marino retaker's the third along with essay tutoring, and a combination of Barbri and Adaptibar this time. I'm thinking of doing Kaplan on campus at the law school I live closest to for July. Though frankly, I'm not sure it'll help. Every time I've taken it, I failed by fewer than 5 points.

I was consistently getting 75-80% of practice MBE questions correct on both Barbri and Adaptibar when I took it this time. I'm curious to see my score report.

Sorry to hear. I feel for you. I failed four times and it was each time for a different reason.

I can tell you that I improved my results most when I learnt by myself, going through each and every past essay, and studying MBEs in a slow manner (quality rather than quantity).

So Kaplan MBEs only and Baressays is what I can recommend as a supplement, and then all self-study, 6 days a week (although I also used an old Barbri book for references, and free online resources, such as SC case briefs). One last thing: I started studying right after I failed, which took away some time pressure.

virgoyum wrote:Hey guys don't want to leave the thread hanging just because I didn't get the news I wanted. Still pushing for those waiting on those results.

Good or bad you will feel the weight start to lift once you find out.

Second-time taker here. Waiting on NY. Failed by 9 scaled points on July. I am a foreign taker (also foreign trained) so, as you probably understand, I kinda betting against the odds here. All in all, my point is that I get you. I get how you must be feeling now.

My circumstances weren't easy when preparing both times. My father was diagnosed with cancer again a year ago after 5 years in remission. It was right before I started studying for July. When my results came out on late October, I didn't get the luxury of grief because I had to wear a smile to cheer him up while he underwent therapy and was hospitalized for about a month during Oct-Nov.

I was about to start preparing for the Feb exam when in early December when my father caught a nasty bug that kept him in intensive care for additional two months and in rehab for another month. Acute pneumonia that sent him into a septic shock and multi-organ failure. Doctors in the unit said there's no chance of him making it as he was in assisted respiration for too long... Well, both my father and I thought otherwise. I coordinated all the doctors I knew from his medical history and managed to bring him back. Today, my mother is having a hard time keeping him in the house...

So I thought that all these hardships meant something = I had to make it. My whole family tried to convince me to either quit or postpone my NY admission efforts and shift my focus on my home country. "You're father is not well", "circumstances are not ideal" (as if they ever are...), "competition is very high". They even told me not to take the exam for a third time if I failed this one - not after the exam but just a couple of days before. Only one person in my family believed in me: Me.

"The odds for a foreign retaker is ~15%": I couldn't care less. "More debt for the trip and application fees": Who gives a f**k?

I watched this video every day I felt my reality was catching up with my determination:

It really helped. "Those who say they can't and those who say they can are usually both right..."Although I don't yet know whether I passed, I feel optimistic. Repeated the Kaplan Prep Course I purchased in my first attempt as it was for free and trusted the system. Studied harder and more determined. Left the exam feeling more confident than the first time. In July I was thinking "it's OK to fail, considering the circumstances..."

This time failure wasn't an option. But even if I do fail, I will try again. And again, and again...The only thing I have to say to bar exam takers: You owe this success to no one else but yourself. It is for you. No one is going to feel like you will, whether you pass or fail. It is a lonely and uphill path; and you'll either fail and tumble down alone or make it to the top and enjoy the view alone.The only certain way to failure is quitting. No matter how many times it takes for you to pass, you never really failed unless you quit. Remember that.

I agree. Failing is like falling down but you get up and run again. I wish you the best!

I am a fifth time taker. It is tough to make a choice when times are not easy during the bar exam.

Quitting was not an option for me too. I went and took the bar exam just after my mother was diagnosed with cancer, planning to be with her afterwards, as the prognosis was hopeful. My mother sent me an encouraging text message on the first bar exam test day. She died a few days later.

I failed. I wanted to go back in time and felt guilty for having taken the exam. You can not change the past. So I decided to take the exam until I pass.

In Feb 2017 I prepared to re-sit the bar exam when my father-in-law suddenly died just days before the exam itself. To take the test worrying or grieving a loved one is not easy. Still my husband encouraged me to fly to CA and take the exam.

I am a foreign attorney and not an English native speaker. So the odds are also very much against me, particularly so as the 15% foreigner's pass rate includes people who are English native speakers.

Despite all I left the exam this time feeling for the first time encouraged as I completed both MPTs and did not miss any of the big major issues. However classically with each day my confidence gets weaker as I have no idea about the MBEs and doubts about my essays.

6 more weeks until results are out ... And so little to divert my attention from 12 May...

I feel exactly the same way as we move towards the results. Although I left the exam feeling that everything went OK, the more we move towards the release dates the more insecure I feel. But this is just and illusion. Your performance those two days has nothing to do with how you feel now, as this negativity stems from the desire to pass which in turn causes anxiety. The more you want it, the more likely is to stress you.

Regarding your guilt, don't feel this way. I was in the same dilemma this February as my father was hospitalized in my home town and my work is 500 miles away. I had to leave him behind and continue both working and preparing for the bar exam. I said my "goodbyes" and really thought I would never see him again. Felt guilty as hell, but life goes on. And both your mother and my father would never want to see us stop pursuing our dreams because of their misfortunes.

I know CA is difficult. One very close friend of mine, native speaker and excellent student, sat the exam this February for the 3rd time. The second time he failed by so little we couldn't believe it. Be patient and keep working on your skills every day relentlessly. You need to obsess over the exam and your preparation. Everything else MUST wait, otherwise you will carry this as a burden your whole life.

Finally, think of this: Most people in your position would have quit already. Not only you didn't, but you have decided to go the full distance until you reach your goal. This means that you want it more than anyone else out there. Now, imagine what kind of a badass attorney this determination will make. He who wants it the most is the most likely to get it, and by "it" I mean success, no matter how you define it.

I wish you the very best of luck in your results this May. Fingers crossed!

PersistentAttorney - very grateful for your words. Fingers crossed for end of April for you!I will try to get a job in NY if I should pass. The green card lottery is in May too, maybe my name is being picked.